AstraZeneca-Merck Lynparza wins approval in China for ovarian cancer treatment

FILE PHOTO: The company logo for pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca is displayed on a screen on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange, U.S., April 8, 2019. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo

(Reuters) - AstraZeneca Plc and Merck & Co Inc said on Thursday that their drug, Lynparza, won approval in China as a first line treatment for a form of ovarian cancer.

The approval in China is based on the results from a late-stage study in which Lynparza lowered the risk of disease progression or death by 70% when compared to placebo.

Lynparza is currently approved in 65 countries for the maintenance treatment of platinum-sensitive relapsed ovarian cancer, the companies said.

FILE PHOTO: The Merck logo is seen at a gate to the Merck & Co campus in Linden, New Jersey, U.S., July 12, 2018. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

(This story corrects typo in the first paragraph)

(Reporting by Aakash Jagadeesh Babu in Bengaluru; Editing by Bernard Orr)